Conditional fees versus damages-based agreements
No win no fee is a description used in advertising, not a complete explanation of a contract. In England and Wales, a conditional fee agreement and a damages-based agreement can both link payment to success, but their calculations differ. This guide helps you identify the questions to ask before signing. It cannot interpret your documents or recommend funding for an individual dispute. Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate systems; do not assume the English and Welsh arrangements described here apply there.
Identify the mechanism, not just the abbreviation
A conditional fee agreement, usually shortened to CFA, makes some or all of the solicitor’s fees dependent on a defined successful outcome. A success fee may be added to the underlying fees. The SRA’s consumer guide describes the arrangement as sharing the risk between solicitor and client. Ask which fees remain payable in each outcome rather than assuming every charge disappears if the matter fails.
Under a damages-based agreement, or DBA, payment is linked to a percentage of money recovered. The SRA describes payment being triggered when the case meets success criteria agreed at the start. The familiar phrase no win no fee does not tell you which structure is proposed. Ask the firm to name it in the written proposal and explain the difference using the same hypothetical facts.
Ask what success actually means
A contract needs a working definition of success. Ask how it deals with a negotiated settlement, recovery of only part of a demand, or a result that includes something other than money. A funding trigger and your own view of a satisfactory result may not be identical. Have the firm explain the relevant clauses in accessible language before treating a fee illustration as meaningful.
Ask what happens if an initial stage succeeds but another stage is needed. Proceedings, appeals and enforcement may have different scope or require another agreement. Do not assume a single signature buys every future step. Record which work is included, which work is excluded and how any extra instruction would be agreed.
- What event triggers payment under this agreement?
- Which stages and work are included?
- How are partial success and settlement treated?
Compare the same complete bill
For a CFA, distinguish an uplift on the solicitor’s fees from any limit measured against particular damages. For a DBA, identify the amount used as the recovery base and ask how costs recovered from an opponent affect the final account. Neither label alone tells you the complete amount that would be deducted. Request a written example that separates every component.
The Law Society lists basic fees, success fees, insurance premiums, disbursements and other charges among possible legal costs. Ask whether each amount includes applicable VAT, who initially pays it and who ultimately bears it. An insurance premium should not vanish from your comparison merely because it is payable later. Avoid counting an expense twice if it is already included in another amount.
Leave room for alternatives and questions
Check existing legal expenses insurance and any union support directly before committing to new funding. Ask the proposed solicitor which alternatives are relevant and whether a separate preliminary advice fee applies. Availability depends on the matter and provider; this website cannot decide eligibility or promise that any option will be offered.
Keep the draft agreement, incorporated terms and written answers together. If the calculation remains unclear, seek independent professional advice rather than choosing the lower-looking percentage. Our homepage worksheet can multiply figures you enter, but it cannot validate the agreement, determine its enforceability or protect a legal deadline.
Sources and further reading
Editorial review: 6 November 2026. This guide is general preparation information, not a technical assessment or confirmed service offer.